Prank b



(No Model.")' r F. B. CONVERSE. GORSET GLASP.

No'. 418,688. Patented Jan. 7, 1890.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR -azl% ATTORNEY N. PETERS. Phnluiilho n her.Washinglon. D. c.

v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. 7

FRANK B. CONVERSE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

cons ET-CLASP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 418,688, dated January7, 1890.

' Application filed March 12, 1889. Serial No. 302,968. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatI, FRANK B. CONVERSE, of the city, county, and State ofNew York, have invented a new and .Improved Corset-Clasp, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to clasps for corsets and has forits object toprovide a simple, in-

improved clasps applied and fastened as viewtaken on the line 00 w inFig. 1.

when the corset is closed: Fig. 2 is a sectional Fig. 3 is an outsideedge View of one of the busks and its stud or catch. Fig. 4 is a viewtaken at right angles to Fig. 3, and with the bush in section on theline yythereon; and Fig. 5 is a detail sectional elevation illustratinga slightly-modified form of the clasp.

The clasp consists of a catch-plate A and a stud B, fixed, respectively,to opposite busks or steels C D of a corset. I show only so much of thepair of busks as is necessary to fully illustrate the construction andoperation of the clasp, it being understood that the length of the busksand the number of clasps used on them will vary with the size and styleof the corset.

The catch-plate A, which is preferably fastened to the busk C by acouple of rivets c, is

. provided with a slot E, made wid er at its inner through a hole in thebusk and is then riveted fast, as most clearly shown in Fig. 2 of thedrawings. The collarb prevents abrasion by the catch-plate A of anymaterial or fabric with which the buskD may be covered. Be-

yond the collar 1) the stud B has a shank b beyond which it has a headF, which extends for the most part around the stud and forms a shoulderf, which overhangs the stud-shank and overlies or overlooks the marginof the narrow portion of the catch-plate slot- E when the clasp isfastened.

The outer face of the stud-head F is preferably, rounded over from thecenter every way to the margin of the stud-shoulder f, and where thisshoulder is lacking at the outer edge of the stud the head is roundedover at f about to the side of the stud-shank. The

lower face of the stud-shoulderf is prefer- 1 ably rounded upward everyway and the catch-plate flange or depressed margin a of the slot E has aconcaved upper face, into which the rounded lower face of thestudshoulder f fits. With this preferred construotion, (shown in Figsil,2, 3, and 4 of the drawings,) the rounded stud-head shoulder f is freeto rock in any direction on or at the.

5 of the drawings the shoulder f of the stud-' head F is beveledstraight upward and outward from the stud-shank, and this shoulder isformed practically in horizontal plane, or is not rounded upward aroundthe stud-shank like the shoulder f of the preferred form of stud aboveddescribed. Otherwise this stud is precisely like the other. Thedepressed margin a of a catch-plate A',with which the stud F is adaptedto interlock, is beveled straight downward and inward to receive and beoverlocked by the shoulder f 'of the stud. This modified form of claspdoes not allow the free rocking motion or play of the stud andcatch-plate on each other which the other style affords; hence thelatter is preferred in practice, and is herein specifically claimed asof my invention.

lVhen the clasp-studs B are fastened to rounded-over portions f of theirheads to the outside, or toward the catch-plates A on the otherbusk withwhich they are-to interlock. Thus arranged it is manifest that when thecorset is to be fastened it is only necessary to pass the stud-headsthrough the larger portions e of the catch-plate slots E and al- I 5slightly or until the studs 13 slip into the wide parts e of thecatch-plate slots, through which the stud-heads may freely'pass. Thepeculiar advantages of the rounded-over or headless portions f of theclasp-studs B'will be ap- 2o parent'when it is understood that if duringthe unfastening of the corsetone or more of the studs should strike theend of the catchplate slot E,-a s indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1-of the drawings,the studs will not 2 5 overlock the catch-plate at'thesepoints, but will always slip freely=through-the plates; hence theseclasps may beeasily and certainly fastened or unfastened in the dark bya child or any person of ordinary intelligence. 0 It will be noticedthat the depressed flange a at the margin of the: catch-plate slot E notonly strengthensthe-entire clasp, but its upper depressed face receivesso much of the stud-heads that they project very little above the faceof the main body of the plates and are not liable to catch the clothingor hair of the wearer of the corset. The catch-plate may be bent orcurved flatwise in direction of its length, if desired.

It is obvious that I am not limited to using a cateh-platehaving a slotmade narrower at one end and provided with a depressed flange borderingthe slot, in combination with a locking-stud having a head roundedunderneath and cut away or rounded over at f, where the stud faces thecatch-plate, as I may use with a locking-stud so formed a flatcatchplate having a slot made narrow at one end and not bordered by adepressed flange. It

is manifest, whether the catch-plate have the depressed flange aroundits slot or not, that the head of the locking-stud by being roundedunderneath will allow easy mutual rocking of the stud and catch-platewhile the stud is being slipped toward the larger part of the slot, andwhen this is reached the roundedover part f of the stud-head assureseasy slip of the stud from the catch-plate to complete the uncoupling ofthe clasp, which is thus effected easier than would be possible if theunder side of the locking stud-head were flat, and therefore liable tobind more or less on the face of the catch-plate; hence there is alegitimate co-operation of the locking-stud having a head roundedunderneath and cut away at one side at f, with a catch-plate having aslot made narrow at one end, whether the plate be flat or be providedwith the (lepressed flange around its-slot.

The herein-described clasp-fastening is not limited in its applicationto-corsets, as it may be used to fasten gloves, shoes, or other artielesas will readily be understood.

' Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, in a corset-clasp, of a catch-plate having a slotmade narrow at one end and provided around said slot with aninwardly-projecting or depressed flange, and a locking-stud having ahead rounded underneath and adapted to enter and engage the catch-plate,substantially as herein set forth.

2. The combination, in a corset-clasp, of a catch-plate having a slotmade narrow at one end and a locking-stud adapted thereto and having ahead rounded underneath and cut away or rounded over at f, where thestud faces the catch-plate, substantially as herein set forth.

3. The combination, in a corset-clasp, of a catch-plate having a slotmade narrow at one end and provided around said slot with animvardly-extending or depressed flange, and a locking-stud provided witha head rounded underneath and cut away or rounded overat f, where thestud faces the catch-plate, substantially as herein set forth.

FRANK B. CONVERSE.

Witnesses:

HENRY L. GooDvvIN, C. SEDGWICK.

